Another Question for a Flatbedder...

well here goes...just bought a truck an trailer....trailer is a 48' spread axle with a 10'2" spread.
now my question is what IS the correct way to load it?
this is the first spread ive ever pulled and since i own it i dont want to screw it up
besides being able to put 40k on the rear of the trailer making axle weights 12,28 &40 what else should i know? or should i just stick with the tried an true method of 12,17,17,17,17?
well now that ive made myself look like a dee-ta-dee go ahead an have at me
thanks guys

 

You have to know the weight of what you are hauling and where to load it on the trailer. You want to load it heavy on the rear You can put 40k on the spread. But it's not adjustable so you have to know where your weight is because once it's on there you can't slide the tandems to distribute the weight

 

One of the easist things you could do is put a gauge on the back of the cab that is plumbed into the truck's airbags. I load my truck all the time from railroad cars, and I use the gauge to load myself. If I bring the gauge up to about 61 pounds, I have right at 33k or so on the truck tandems. Some of the trailers are air ride as well, and we use a gauge on them to determine their weights. They don't cost much to install, and once you use it a few times, you will be able to easily get your weight set where you need it every time thereafter.

I load myself 2-3 times a week sometimes, and I can load 48-50k on a trailer each and every time by using the gauge.

By the way, there is no 12, 17,17,17,17 loading. It's 12, 34, 34. The reason for that is to have a pair of axles meet the legal definition of a tandem axle, there has to be a mechanical or pneumatic linkage betwen the two axles that equalizes the load. So each half of a tandem will always carry 50% of the load. If it is an air ride, the bags on the axles will be plumbed together so that they are equalized. If it is a spring ride, it will have a set of spring hangars or walking beams that equalize the loads.

 

well the KW has a dash guage for the air bag psi (61 psi is about 33k)....trailer used to have one...i prolly outta get it plumbed back in soon
so from the way you put it burky...I should be scaling 12,34,17 &17 or perhaps 12,28 & 40?

as for the 12,17,17,17,17...if you've ever hit the poodunk wiegh station by ennis or twin bridges...thats how the mt DOT guys do it...i dare ya to be 1 lb over...its montana after all...they're either huntin deer an elk or truckers...and as long as its legal, they get ya

 

My point is that if the two axles are intercconnected, either mechanically or pneumatically, they are equalized and have to be the exact same weight as each other. The DOT may check to see if there is a difference because it is possible to have a lift axle and run one heavy while the other is up, but by their very design, they equalize out and the weight has to be split evenly.

The logic behind a dump valve on a spread being illegal is that it interferes with the load equalizing function of the air ride on the axles.

As for what you can scale, it is up to 40 on the spread, up to 34 on the tandems, and up to 12 on the steers, as long as the overall gross does not exceed 80. Any combination is okay as long as you don't break the individual limits and don't break the gross number. What you have is a trailer that is simply less sensitive to differences in the weight and gives you a little bit more leeway in how you load it..

 

Alot of Canadian running companies have 53 ft trailers with sliding front axle. This being because in the states, as stated before, you can put 40,000 back there, but in certain spots in Canada you are only aloud to run with your tandems closed due to bridge formulas. I dont know whiy its like that, but you get a big ticket for bridge law violations. But to answer your question, yess you can move the tandems. If you haul oversize, certain states will state how many feet between axle centers you are allowed. If you are six inches off, youre screwed. But yes, they move and yes trailer configurations can be very long

 

what brickmamn was saying about weight is also true for any van drivers listening. If youre new, you may apply this little rule of thumb. It doesn't always work but just about 95 % of the time you can place your tandems under your back pallets and you will be good on weight. Just remember certain states do not allow the same tandems configurations so be wary of which states your traveling thru.

 

And this topic is 5 years old. So why necro it?